Eastland Gardens Civic Association
Meeting Minutes
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
1. Call to Order
EGCA President Rochelle Frazier Gray called the meeting to order and EGCA Vice President Monica Johnson opened with a prayer.
2. President’s Report
· Voting forthe neighborhood will be held at Zion Baptist on 11/8.
· The civic association Christmas celebration will be held on 12/20/16 – the normal meeting time. We will send out emails, but this will be a potluck – everyone welcome. Please sign up to volunteer or bring a dish.
· The EGCA website is being updated and the list is being reviewed.
· The pedestrian bridge at Douglas and Polk was hit by a truck and is now closed because it is unsafe. We are awaiting an update on this.
· DPR is creating a youth event and will take neighborhood kids bowling or to a movie. Details will be announced at the November meeting. Contact Rochelle Frazier Gray for details. ()
· The ANC meetings are the second Tuesday of each month at the Dorothy Height Library.
· PSA meetings are the first Wednesday of each month at Cesar Chavez. PSA stands for “patrol service area”. Our area is this side of 295 from Kenilworth to Benning road. Gregg Rhett thanked the police for their help with the morning commuters.
· The at-large city councilmembers (David Grosso, Anita Bonds, Alissa Silverman) have been invited to our meetings to hear our concerns.
· The marijuana cultivation center is progressing.
· Pepco said they are working on transformers and this has been the reason for the outages. They are replacing old equipment.
· Lt. Arcee asked that neighbors be aware that robberies increase at Christmas – be aware and use common sense and do not leave anything in your car. Crime is down overall and new procedures have been put in place and are in effect now.
3. Grid Alternatives
· Rozina Kanchwala from Grid Alternatives spoke about her organization which is a non-profit solar installer which also provides job training. Their motto is “People + Planet + Employment.” A solar installation can save on electricity costs.
· There is no cost to income-qualified residents.
· They host energy efficiency workshops.
· The city passed a renewable portfolio bill and wants 100,000 homes solarized. DC Sustainable Energy works with Grid Alternatives and is a major funder. Some of the equipment is donated or given to them at a reduced price.
· Question: If I sign up today, how soon can I get panels installed? Answer: The process will take 3-4 weeks. We need to first collect paperwork, do a site visit, and get permits. The installation itself takes about 2 days.
· Question: Do I own the panels? Answer: Yes.
· Question: What happens if there is damage? Answer: There is a 25 year warranty. The panels require very little maintenance and service.
· Question: If I harvest power in the summer, can I use in the winter? Answer: The credits roll over, some months you will use more and some you will use less. Most people report a 50% reduction and some people have $0 bills.
· Question: Will my monthly bill fluctuate? Answer: This depends on your use and the sunlight. They recommend NOT using a budget plan.
· Question: Do I get 2 bills? Answer: No, just 1 from Pepco.
· Question: Who are your competitors? Answer: There are other firms doing this but we are the only non-profit and work with low income communities.
4. DC State Athletic Association
· Kenneth Owens () indicated that the DC State Athletic Association started in 2002. There were no standards for athletics, so the mayor created the office. The organization holds state championships in 13 sports.
· The cross country championship is on November 5 from 9:30-1:30 at the track in Eastland Gardens. They will have parking ushers and 25-30 schools will participate. They will park at Cesar Chavez and use shuttle buses to transfer patrons
· Mr. Owens offered EGCA the opportunity to provide concessions for the event.
· Question: Can the parking be moved to the back of the park and not in the front area by Anacostia? Answer: Yes, will use ushers and direct them away from the neighborhood area and direct them into the back area to park.
· Question: Can we post signs before the event to advertise this? Answer: Yes.
· Question: Can high school students volunteer and get community service hours? Answer: Yes
· Question: We understand you cannot sell anything and make a profit on NPR land. Answer: We will be on DPR land.
· Candace Rhett offered to organize the concession stand. Gregg Rhett indicated that the original vision for the track was to include a concession area that we could use – that never got built.
· The discussion was tabled and Rochelle indicated that the board would discuss and make a decision. (Note: The event occurred on 11/5 and there will be a future report on the outcome.)
5. Announcements
· Regina King indicated that Pepco will come out to an EGCA meeting in November or January to discuss the outages. The flickering we have experienced was likely caused by a fuse box change and local construction. But we want Pepco to give us details about this.
· It was recommended that people install a whole house surge protector. The Rhetts indicated that this installation helped them in the recent outage. The plug blew, but it saved the house from other damage. The initial cost is about $50 but you need an electrician to install properly.
· The Eastland Gardens Flower Club is taking donations to cover the costs of decorating the tree at the neighborhood entrance. The tree lighting will be 12/3/16. There was a suggestion to use the concession profits to pay for this.
· Some neighbors had their flood policies cancelled by their mortgage companies. FEMA indicated that we are in a low risk area.
· Greg Lutzenberg has started a renewable energy group on the other side of Minnesota Avenue and talked about his interest in gathering like-minded neighbors to participate,.
· There will be a neighborhood cleanup in November at some point before the tree trimming.
· Rinaldo Washington reported that he is taking seniors through Sanctuary Village to the new African American museum on the next Saturday and was looking for additional seniors to participate.
6. ANC Reports
· Siraaj Hasan indicated that he represents 2,000 residents and serves as a liaison to government agencies. He can be reached at . He will be on the 11/8 ballot.
· The playground equipment will be replaced but there have been challenges. Javier Barker and Siraj Hasaan met with DPR and identified a location for the equipment so this is moving forward. The equipment was already purchased.
· Initially, the left side of the track was supposed to become a baseball diamond. It’s possible we could still get this work completed.
· DPR said they will help to beautify the park (200 acres) which has been ignored. The bike trail is progressing nicely. New DPR leadership should help. We received a landscaping plan for planting and cleanup.
· Call 311 to report any street lights that are out. Indicate the pole number and write down the confirmation number. Most of the lighting is out of date; they plan to assess and replace. Note that tickets have been closed without the work being completed. We all need to follow up on this.
· Kenilworth Courts - the 7D commission did end up providing a letter of support providing they reduce the number of units and provide a detailed plan for relocation of the residents. They requested and received a draft from the DC Board of Housing. Also discussed were plans for sewer capacity. The rationale for the decision was that doing something was much better than doing nothing, so the builders met the ANC demands.
· The ANC’s opposition to the project:
o Swing space – no commitment as to how that would be used
o Traffic – concern for how this will worsen the current situation
o DCHA police not monitoring this area – concern that increased density will increase crime. Siraaj did a ride along with MPD and city administrators to highlight areas of concern.
· The initial phase involves 17 units.
o Question: Will there be commercial spaces? Answer: Yes, that is part of the plan. The work will be done in phases and the builders must return to the community for input at the end of each phase to get permission to continue.
o Question: Will there be another way to get in and out of the neighborhood? Answer: No really – there is a plan which Siraaj will share at a future meeting.
· Question: Will the city come back to re-sod the sidewalk areas that were done? There is a runoff issue. Answer: Siraaj will check into this.
· Question: Will the pool be refilled with dirt? Answer: We will talk with them. (Although John Stokes did agree to this in the September 2016 meeting.)
· Note: Justin Lini and Candace Rhett were on the Kojo Nmandi show on 10/22/16.
Membership dues of $5 per person (18 yrs of age) or older are due each year
Contact the EGCA Board at
Visit the EGCA Web Site at http://www.eastlandgardensdc.org/
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